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Wine-wise, all these towns are famously associated with the Montefalco Sagrantino wine, which dukes it out with Friuli Venezia Giulia\u2019s Pignolo grape for the title of \u201cItaly\u2019s most famous grape variety\u201d. The wine is big, tannic and when well-vinified, the source of highly interesting reds, that provide quite a mouthful. Clearly, when vinifications are less than ideal, look out. In many respects, Montefalco\u2019s most enjoyable wines are the easy-going, nicely approachable Montefalco Rosso and Rosso Riserva wines, blends of Sangiovese (mostly: 60-80%) with smaller percentages of Sagrantino (10-25%) plus others allowed in the regional list of wine grapes (most of the time, this means Merlot and\/or Montepulciano). The most famous Montefalco wine of all was historically the Passito, a sweet red wine made by air-drying grapes. This was the most commonly found red wine of Montefalco denomination, which turned to making classically dry Sagrantino wines only very recently (the 1970s, as strange as that may seem nowadays). When well made, the Sagrantino Passito is still Montefalco\u2019s best wine, marvellously sweet, luscious and well-balanced, but unfortunately sweet wine sales being what they are these days, has led a number lof local producers to abandon the tried-and-true in favour of making easier to understand big red wine. For more information on Sagrantino\u2019s grapes and wines, I refer you to my article on Sagrantino published in 2022 here in the Terroir Sense Wine Review<\/em> on June 15 2022: The wines of Montefalco: New and Recent Releases<\/em>.<\/p>\n Montefalco\u2019s white grapes<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Not many know that Montefalco was conquered by the nearby Umbrian town of Todi back in 1280. I hear you thinking: Ian, I like wine and I read the TerroirSense Wine Review<\/em> because of that, so what do we care about what Todi was thinking and doing centuries ago? Well, because if you can steal away from trying to identify seventeen different descriptors in every glass of wine you taste, then you have the time to learn that Todi\u2019s overrunning of Montefalco goes along way in explaining why at least one grape, if not more, has long ruled the Montefalco area\u2019s white wine grape scenario. That grape is the Grechetto di Todi<\/strong>, one of the two Grechetto varieties officially recognized in Italy (and that has been identified as being the same as Emilia Romagna\u2019s Pignoletto variety. With the arrival of the Tuderte domination of Montefalco\u2019s territory (tuderte <\/em>as in \u201cof Todi\u201d), planting of this specific white variety took off; up until then, the bulk of Montefalco\u2019s production area had been devoted to growing red grapes (Sagrantino, for the most part) and making red wines. So if you have ever wondered why a grape called Grechetto di Todi is so common in the Montefalco territory (rather than, say, Grtechetto di Montefalco), well, now you know. To a smaller extent, a second \u201cGrechetto\u201d grape variety is also grown in the Montefalco territory: the Grechetto di Orvieto<\/strong>, which is more typical and common of the Orvieto denomination (where Grechetto di Todi is also grown). But while historically the Grechettos were the Montefalco area\u2019s most important white grapes, today another white grape has emerged from the doldrums of the past and is playing an increasingly important role: Trebbiano Spoletino<\/strong>. This is the only Trebbiano variety to be related to another in the Trebbiano group (Trebbiano Spoletino is a relative of the rare Trebbiano Abruzzese), and like the latter grape, its is a high-quality wine grape: its wines have nothing in common with those made with the lowly Trebbiano Toscano and Trebbiano Romagnolo, for example. However, there is much confusion surrounding Trebbiano Spoletino, with wines made by some producers fairly aromatic in nature and others not much at all \u00a0(I always use the world \u201caromatic\u201d in its precise enological context, meaning a wine expressing noteworthy concentrations of terpenic molecules: such aromatic Trebbiano Spoletino wines can best be thought of as being somewhat Muscat-like, but never so potent). I for one am not entirely sure producers are all using one and the same grape, especially those with older vineyards of the stuff. (I have walked Montefalco\u2019s vineyards numerous times and can vouch to have observed at least six or seven very different-looking \u201cTrebbiano Spoletino\u201d grapes, and so I wonder.) For the most part, when similarly-made, outside of the aforementioned greater or lesser degree of aromatic oomph, Trebbiano Spoletino wines resemble each other, exuding notes of lime (especially), honey, and white flowers. I state \u201cwhen similarly made\u201d, because some producers have taken to macerating their Trebbiano Spoletino grapes at length, making macerated\/orange wines that do little to clarify what the grape\u2019s wines are really supposed to smell and taste like. Clearly, those laughable wines that smell and taste of Sauvignon Blanc (admittedly more common once than they are nowadays) aren\u2019t worth a second of your time or a cent out of your wallet. But to be clear, Trebbiano Spoletino wines, when well-made by competent producers, are actually amongst Italy\u2019s biggest wine success stories of the last fifteen-twenty years.<\/p>\n The wines<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Today, Montefalco Bianco wines have to be made with no less than 50% Trebbiano Spoletino; before the changes were made to the official production guidelines starting with the 2016 vintage, the blend was Grechetto grapes (not less than 50%) and Trebbiano Toscano (20-35%), plus up to 30% other grapes allowed in the region, including things like Chardonnay. Montefalco Grechetto wines have to be at least 85% Grechetto varieties. The wine called Trebbiano Spoletino Spoleto has to be made with 85% that grape variety: other Spoleto white wines allowed now are the Spoleto Bianco (minimum 50% Trebbiano Spoletino), and Trebbiano Spoletino Superiore and Trebbiano Spoletino Passito (both at least 85% Trebbiano Spoletino). Most importantly, the changes made to the official production guidelines that went into effect with the 2016 vintage now determine that these white wines have to be bottles within the jurisdiction of the specific wine production zone, a highly qualitative move and a guarantee for wine lovers everywhere. In other words, you won\u2019t be buying any authentic Trebbiano Spoletino Spoleto or Montefalco Grechetto wines that have been bought in Italy and bottled in Germany or Norway. And that has a whole lot of meaning and ramifications.<\/p>\n In summary\u2026<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n In ultimate analysis, while the Montefalco wine territory is mostly famous for its very big, powerfully tannic, wines made with Sagrantino, it actually offers wine lovers so much more. The white wines are underrated. The Grechetto wines are some of the most improved white wines in all Italy, and have never been better. Those made with Trebbaino Spoletino have the potential to rank amongst Italy\u2019s very best and most interesting, and you\u2019ll immediately understand why I say that when you come across a good one. Unfortunately, this grape has been the subject of some wildly different vinifications of late which run the risk of confusing the wine-loving public making it difficult to build up a large consumer base of fans. Going forward, this is something people need to give some serious thought to in the Denominazione: the best Trebbiano Spoletino wines are, by far, those that are made as classic white wines and showcase the variety\u2019s truly amazing, even unique, capacity to express notes of lime in all its potential expressions (fresh lime, candied lime, lime nectar, lime cordial). When that happens, Trebbiano Spoletino are like, the true Carricante wines of Etna (not the Carricante blends, which are mostly pedestrian) absolutely like no other white wine in the world, and it seems foolish to me to throw that potential away by wanting to macerate or do other stuff to the poor grape. Last and most definitely least, the Montefalco wines are a hodge-podge of many different things: although there are some good, even fun, wines being made in that category, the majority differ wildly one from the other, and so rather than expressing any semblance of a \u201cMontefalco somewhereness\u201d, are best thought of as exercises in creative freedom, something Italians just always so love to do. Good for them. It\u2019s a relatively new category of wine that has been greatly improved with the changes to its production guidelines that now bring Trebbiano Spoletino to the fore. By contrast, there are no such concerns with Sagrantino Passito, one of the world\u2019s greatest sweet wines, and that ranks right up there with Port, Maury, Banyuls and Recioto della Valpolicella as one of the most interesting and worthwhile sweet red wines in the world. Get a hold of some of the good one Sagrantino Passitos described in this article, pair them with rich stews, aged cheeses (blue cheeses too) and any thick chocolate dessert you can think of (I said \u201cthick\u201d, so not chocolate mousse: chocolate brownies and dark chocolate flourless cakes are ideal) and get ready to love your life.<\/p>\n The wines in this tasting report.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n All the wines in this report were tasted in Italy last September in Rome. The majority of the wines in this report were obtained through Diana Cataldo of Miriade & Partners to whom I extend my personal thank-you (Diana and her team work with the association of Montefalco producers in promoting the territory and its wines). A few other Montefalco wines were tasted in my office in Shanghai.<\/em><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/s.terroirsense.com\/2023\/10\/\u5fae\u4fe1\u56fe\u7247_20231020144917_\u526f\u672c-769x1024.jpg\")
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